Countering Colston

Details

Organization Timeline

Bristol’s public debate on Edward Colston challenges civic memory

📅 5 May 2016

A public debate at the University of Bristol examined the legacy of the merchant and slave trader Edward Colston. Community activists had long questioned the celebration of Colston in a city shaped by...

Bristol communities renew the campaign to change Colston’s legacy

📅 7 December 2019

Campaigners and residents continued petitions, research and public education challenging the city’s celebration of Edward Colston. Long before the statue fell, Black-led organizing questioned the...

Bristol protesters topple Edward Colston’s statue

📅 7 June 2020

Around 10,000 people joined an anti-racist demonstration organized by All Black Lives Bristol. Protesters pulled down the statue of a slave-trading merchant and rolled it to the harbor. The action...

Bristol’s empty plinth becomes a site of Black public memory

📅 12 June 2020

After the Colston statue was removed, residents gathered around its empty plinth with placards and messages. The space became an improvised memorial and forum for debate about slavery, resistance...